The Protagonist's Sister Loves Me, But She's Definitely a Yandere. - Chapter 21: The Event Committee

Chapter 21: The Event Committee

The high school I go to gives students a surprising amount of freedom.

This is because the school’s motto is that “freedom comes with responsibility.” Basically, the student council handles most of the events. It’s easy to understand if you imagine students being in charge instead of teachers.

At most other schools, teachers are probably the ones organizing everything. 

But here, as long as it doesn’t involve money or anything complicated, the student council and other students take care of the planning and management. This makes our school way more flexible than others.

That’s why events like the sports festival and the cultural festival are always a big deal.

I used to think student councils having a lot of power only happened in anime or manga. But apparently, it’s a real thing. I thought about this while stifling a yawn.

Through my blurry vision, I could see the class president standing at the podium.

It was homeroom time. The topic was recruiting members for the sports festival committee.

But the chalkboard was completely blank. No names were written down. No boys, no girls. The classroom was filled with chatter, but no one volunteered. Honestly, I was just thinking about how long this was going to drag on.

“Okay, back to the topic. First, any volunteers from the boys?”

The class president tried to get things back on track as the room’s atmosphere got more chaotic.

The class quieted down for a moment, then the noise started up again. 

I was kind of impressed they could argue so much. This class sure seemed to love events. Honestly, if they were that into it, someone could just volunteer already.

But no —we were all Japanese, after all. That awkward “you first” attitude was in full swing.

The top candidate was obvious.

In front of me, Hinata was already in the center of the class, casually guiding the conversation about who should volunteer. He had more influence than the class president at this point.

Voices started suggesting Hinata for the role.

“Hinata-kun, you should totally do this kind of thing.”

“Really? …Well, I guess a lot of people have asked me to.”

“Wait, wait! Do you mean like Himeno-senpai or something?!”

He sounded a little hesitant, but his face showed he wasn’t completely against the idea. That was just like Hinata —instead of volunteering himself, he waited for people to suggest him.

He scratched the back of his head and smiled. I glanced at him briefly.

I turned my gaze to the window, waiting for homeroom to end. They needed one boy and one girl for the committee. Most likely, Rika would nominate herself and secure the spot as his partner.

“Well, it sounds like everyone thinks I’m the best choice… What do you think, Rika?”

He wasn’t just talking about our classmates —he probably meant people from other classes, Mimi, Himeno-senpai, and plenty more. Hinata smoothly directed the conversation toward Rika.

All eyes turned to Rika. To everyone’s surprise, she disagreed.

Her eyebrows lowered as if she were troubled, and she scratched her cheek.

“I think… I might be against it.”

Rika was the most popular girl in the class, and her words carried a lot of weight. The flow of everyone agreeing with Hinata came to an immediate stop. Without hesitation, Rika continued speaking.

“…I mean, if you become an event committee member, you won’t have any free time after school.”

“Yeah, you’ve got a point. Oh! Then why don’t you join the committee too, Rika?”

“Hmm, but I’d rather go to the movies with Hii-kun.”

Rika gave a slightly off-topic answer, glancing at Hinata from the side.

Basically, she was saying, “If being on the committee takes up your time, then you should prioritize me instead.” I see —it made sense. The “harem war” was in full swing right now. If Hinata joined the committee, he’d inevitably spend more time with Himeno-senpai. That wasn’t something Rika could accept.

Her tone was soft and airy, but she was surprisingly cunning.

Everyone knew Hinata was popular, and everyone was curious about who would win the title of his girlfriend. Since Rika was a popular girl herself, the class erupted in chatter and speculation.

Some girls squealed with excitement, while some guys muttered curses under their breath.

“…Alright, I get it. I guess I’ll have to let Himeno-senpai down.”

“Yay! Then let’s go on a date after school today!”

“A date? Come on, people are going to misunderstand again.”

“Actually, if they misunderstand, that’s a win for me!”

And just like that, the matter was settled. Rika won —completely. Hinata decided not to join the committee.

The class president cleared their throat quietly, trying to regain control.

“…If Hinata-kun isn’t doing it, what should we do about the boys’ spot?”

“How about Shinji? He’s responsible, so he’d be perfect.”

“Usui-kun, huh? …Well, that’s the suggestion.”

The class president’s gaze landed on me —and like a chain reaction, so did everyone else’s. 

I was stunned by how quickly things escalated. I glared at Hinata, but he just gave me a bright smile and a thumbs-up.

I was about to refuse out of sheer frustration.

But before I could say anything—

“Shinji can handle it. I’ll vouch for him.”

Hinata gave me his unfounded confidence. How did he decide I was capable of this? I’m not even in a club —I just go straight home after school. A homebody like me on the sports festival committee? What a joke.

“Listen, I’m not in any sports club. Wouldn’t it be better for someone from an athletic club to do it? If I step in, it’ll just ruin the vibe.”

“There’s no rule that says someone from the homegoing club can’t do it.”

Technically, he was right. The rules didn’t care who volunteered.

But still, it made sense for sports events to be handled by people who actually cared about sports. I was trying to think of how to refuse politely.

“Besides, you’re Hinata’s friend, Usui. You’ll do great.”

“Being on the committee just means carrying equipment or doing announcements. You’ll be fine.”

“If you get stuck, I’ll help you out, Shinji. I’m counting on you.”

Hinata wrapped things up like that. It seemed everyone except me was on the same page. Because of our long friendship, Hinata had decided to dump this responsibility on me —but wasn’t this a bit too irresponsible?

The power of peer pressure is terrifying. Since Hinata backed out of the committee thanks to Rika, everyone was desperate to push it onto someone else. I clicked my tongue quietly. Well, this might actually boost my grades, so I’d just have to look at that as a benefit.

(Wait a minute… Maybe this isn’t so bad after all.)

I realized there was another benefit to joining the committee.

If I became a committee member, I’d have to stay after school more often. Preparing supplies, planning the schedule —since students were in charge of everything, there was a lot to do. That meant I’d get home late.

So what did that mean? Fewer students would be around.

That would be way easier than staying alert around every girl in school. If I spotted someone acting suspicious while staying after school, they’d likely be the stalker.

Of course, the stalker was sneaky. There was a chance they’d stay cautious and avoid making a mistake. But when I was with Mimi the other day, I got a jealous email right away.

If I joined the committee, I’d have more interactions with girls.

(…I might end up dragging unrelated girls into this, though.)

Ignoring my classmates’ noisy chatter, I closed my eyes and thought.

Finally, I let out a big sigh and nodded.

“Alright. I’ll do it. I’ll join the committee.”